SEC and Ripple End Years-Long Legal Battle After Jointly Dropping Appeals
Ripple Labs and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have agreed to end their protracted legal fight over the classification of the XRP token, with both parties filing to withdraw their respective appeals.
Joint Agreement to Dismiss Appeals
In a filing on Thursday, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals acknowledged a joint dismissal of the SEC’s appeal and Ripple’s cross-appeal. Under the agreement, each side will bear its own legal costs and fees.
Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty confirmed the development on X (formerly Twitter), stating:
“Following the Commission’s vote today, the SEC and Ripple formally filed directly with the Second Circuit to dismiss their appeals. The end… and now back to business.”
Following the Commission's vote today, the SEC and Ripple formally filed directly with the Second Circuit to dismiss their appeals.
The end…and now back to business. https://t.co/nVqthNcFOt
— Stuart Alderoty (@s_alderoty) August 7, 2025
The move effectively closes a legal chapter that began in December 2020, when the SEC sued Ripple, alleging it sold XRP as an unregistered security.
Judge Torres’ 2023 Ruling Stands
The dismissal means that the July 2023 ruling by U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres will stand as the final outcome. In that ruling, the court determined that XRP sales on public exchanges did not constitute securities transactions, but institutional sales of XRP were unregistered securities offerings.
Judge Torres ordered Ripple to pay $125 million in fines — significantly less than the SEC’s $2 billion request. The SEC appealed the decision in October 2023, and Ripple filed a cross-appeal soon after.
Political Shift and Expected Dismissal
The lawsuit, filed during Donald Trump’s first administration, became a key legal battleground in the crypto industry. In his current term, President Trump has pledged to end aggressive crypto enforcement, leading the SEC to drop multiple lawsuits against digital asset companies.
The SEC and Ripple had already signaled a potential resolution in April 2025, when they jointly requested the appeals court to pause proceedings. By May, both sides reached a settlement framework, though Judge Torres declined Ripple’s request to reduce the $125 million fine, emphasizing that the company must still comply with federal securities laws.
XRP Price Reaction
The push toward settlement has fueled a significant price rally for XRP in recent months. From a low of $1.79 on April 9, 2025, XRP surged nearly 99% to hit $3.56 on July 22.
At the time of writing, XRP is trading around $3.31, up 10.6% over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGecko.
